On the
Restoration of Bhikkhuni Order (2)
Selected articles

[1] A conversation with a sceptic – Bhikkhuni
FAQ. Bhikkhu Sujato.[2] Glimmers of a Thai Bhikkhuni Sangha History.
Ayya Tathaaloka. [3] Research regarding the lineage of bhikkhuni
ordination. Committee of Western Bhiksunis.[4] First Thai woman ordained. Sanitsuda Ekachai.[5] The rules are there to be tested. Sanitsuda
Ekachai. [6] Make way for the women. Sanitsuda Ekachai.

-ooOoo-

[01]

A conversation with a sceptic – Bhikkhuni FAQ

Bhikkhu Sujato13-042008

What is a bhikkhuni?

A bhikkhuni is a fully ordained Buddhist nun. (Bhikkhunī
is a Pali word, used by the Theravada tradition in South Asia. Other
traditions use the Sanskrit equivalent bhiksunī, pronounced
‘bhik-shoo-nee’)

Where did the bhikkhuni order come from?

The bhikkhuni order (‘Sangha’) was started by the Buddha himself. When
women came to him seeking to live the renunciate life, the Buddha allowed
them to go forth in his religion. At that time, the order of bhikkhus
(Buddhist monks) already existed, so the Buddha adopted the code of
discipline and way of community life from the bhikkhus and changed it as
necessary.

What do we know about bhikkhunis in ancient times?

Most Buddhist texts are told from the bhikkhus’ point of view, so there
is not a lot of information about bhikkhunis. But there are several works
composed by or about the bhikkhunis in the time of the Buddha. The bhikkhuni
Sangha is mentioned throughout the Buddhist disciplinary texts (Vinayas) of
all schools. In later years, the inscriptions on Buddhist monuments mention
bhikkhunis nearly as often as bhikkhus. They often played important roles,
such as donors, scholars, and teachers.

What do bhikkhunis do?

The same things as the bhikkhus. That is, they meditate, study and teach
the Dhamma, run monasteries, act as counsellors, participate in ritual and
community activities, engage in social service, and so on.

How do bhikkhunis live?

The ancient texts show that the bhikkhunis’ life was oriented towards
seclusion and meditation, but also had a strong community involvement. Each
new bhikkhuni must study for several years under a qualified teacher until
they are ready to be independent. Like the bhikkhus, the bhikkhunis live
entirely on alms offerings, and may not use personal funds. They are
supported by donors who supply food, medicines, dwelling, robes, and other
needs.

Are there bhikkhunis in all traditions of Buddhism?

There is no simple answer to this question. In ancient times, the
Buddhist community was unified, and the bhikkhunis simply formed one part of
this earliest Buddhism. Later, as Buddhism diverged into different schools
(which happened about 200-400 years after the Buddha), each school had its
own bhikkhuni community. The bhikkhuni Sangha was
introduced to Sri Lanka by Venerable Sanghamitta, the daughter of King
Ashoka, about 250 BCE. It flourished in Sri Lanka until around 1100 CE, a
time of war and famine, and then disappeared. No-one knows exactly why this
happened.

But the bhikkhuni lineage was taken from Sri Lanka to China in 443 CE.
From there it spread through the East Asian area. Today bhikkhunis are found
in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan.

The bhikkhuni lineage was never introduced into Tibet, but in modern
times some women practising within the Tibetan tradition have taken
bhikkhuni ordination from the East Asian Sangha. These bhikkhunis, such as
Ven. Tenzin Palmo, Ven. Thubten Chodren, Ven. Lekshe Tsomo, and others, have
gone on to become respected practitioners and teachers in world Buddhism.

In the Theravadin regions of South-east Asia there are occasional
references to bhikkhunis through history, but no living bhikkhuni community
has survived until today. Like those practising within the Tibetan
tradition, women who wish to practice within the Theravada tradition have
taken bhikkhuni ordination from the East Asian bhikkhuni Sangha, sometimes
together with Theravada bhikkhus. Today there are many hundreds of
bhikkhunis living in Sri Lanka. In Thailand there are a few bhikkhunis, who
are generally well accepted by the community, but are denied official
support from the Sangha administration. In Cambodia, one of the Sangharajas
(Leaders of the Sangha) is personally supporting a bhikkhuni community. Two
years ago a Myanmar bhikkhuni was thrown in jail due to the objections of
the monks. Suffering from post-traumatic stress, she subsequently disrobed.
Hence there are no bhikkhunis in Myanmar.

Why do we need bhikkhuni ordination?

There are three essential reasons why bhikkhuni ordination is so
important.

1. The bhikkhuni ordination was designed by the Buddha himself to provide
the ideal platform for women to seek full liberation. As bhikkhus, we are
reminded every day of the Buddha’s consummate skill in understanding the
needs of monastics, and establishing a way of training that is finely tuned
to support the holy life. We feel nurtured and supported by the knowledge
that we have fully entered into the Sangha, and are practising within the
same community as the arahants of old.

2. From the time of his Enlightenment to the time of his Parinibbana, the
Buddha consistently stated that for his religion to be complete and
successful, it must consist of the four-fold assembly: bhikkhus, bhikkhunis,
laymen, and laywomen. Any other arrangement is imbalanced and incomplete.
Without the bhikkhuni Sangha, Buddhism is deprived of a tremendously
powerful spiritual component. In virtually all meditation retreats, the
women far outnumber the men. Imagine the loss of spiritual leadership the
Buddhist community has suffered by denying these sincere practitioners a
role in leading the Buddhist community.

3. If Buddhist institutions remain male-only, they will become
increasingly marginalized in a world that accepts the equality of women.
Rather than falling behind the rest of the world in our spiritual values, we
should recognize that the principle of equality for all is based on the same
ethical values that inform the heart of true Buddhism: universal
loving-kindness and compassion.

Is it really true that women have bad kamma and can’t get enlightened?

Of course not. The Buddha emphatically stated that if when go forth they
have exactly the same potential as men, and are fully capable of even the
highest level of arahantship. The original Buddhist texts contain verses by
enlightened bhikkhunis such as Venerable Uppalavaṇṇā,
Venerable Khemā, and many others. In fact, this literature forms one of the
oldest records of women’s spiritual accomplishments found anywhere in the
world.

But can’t the women just be happy to have 10-precept ordination (as a
samaneri)?

The samaneri ordination, as it is presented in the Vinaya, is for girls
who were too immature to take on the full training. It was never meant for
mature women. The Buddha established only one framework for mature
renunciate women, and that is the bhikkhuni Sangha. Attempts to invent new
ordination platforms will never gain the acceptance of the Buddhist
community at large. The end result is a proliferation of incompatible
models, which further weakens the already fragmented nuns’ community. In
Buddhist nations, it is only within those countries that support bhikkhuni
ordination that women have a leading and recognized role.

I’ve heard that Theravada monks will never accept bhikkhunis. Is this
true?

No. Some monks support, some oppose. In a conservative body like the
Sangha, which is, after all, made up of human beings, there are many who
would prefer to cling to what they know and are comfortable with. Sometimes
it seems that Buddhist monks will tell you that everything is impermanent;
yet they never want anything to change!

Part of the problem is that bhikkhus do not know very much about the
position of bhikkhunis within original Buddhism. Sangha education is still
largely based on traditional materials, and this tends to create a culture
which values preservation rather than reformation.

But we can understand the process better when we reflect that similar
situations are found in all the major world religions. In every religion, a
vital message of freedom has become the basis for wealthy and powerful
religious institutions. These are owned and run exclusively by men who
believe they have a sacred right to inherit both the material property and
the spiritual authority of those institutions. Whenever this is challenged,
those who benefit from the old arrangement will resist change. Invariably,
they produce a religious text which they claim provides an ancient,
irrevocable mandate for their monopoly. Such arguments, however, are usually
only persuasive to those who benefit from them, for a number of very good
reasons:

1. Any ancient text is subject to a number of different interpretations,
and rarely is there an unambiguous case to support the male monopoly.
2. The ancient texts were composed long ago in a limited historical and
cultural context, and the authors could not have envisaged our present day
social conditions.
3. Refusing to support the religious aspirations of women because of
legalistic details contradicts the luminous spiritual values of compassion
and wisdom.

This explains the fact, which I have repeatedly heard from nuns living in
Thailand, that they have not experienced opposition from the individual
monks so much, but mainly with the Sangha administration. Opposition to
bhikkhunis does not arise spontaneously from the ground up, as some sort of
genetic predisposition. It must be strenuously maintained from the top down,
as an ideological imposition.

But the Buddha tried to prevent the ordination of women!

This refers to the legend of the request by Mahapajapati, the Buddha’s
foster-mother, to gain ordination as the first nun. Modern scholars have
shown that this story abounds in textual problems, and cannot possibly be a
factual account. It is not sure exactly why it took shape in this form. But
perhaps it originally stemmed from personal difficulties concerning
Mahapajapati, which were later taken to apply to the bhikkhunis as a whole.

So isn’t it the case that the Buddha said that if bhikkhunis were
ordained, Buddhism would die out after 500 years?

This prophecy is part of the same legend, and the text depicts the Buddha
making this prophecy after accepting Mahapajapati as a bhikkhuni. Obviously,
it’s been a lot more than 500 years since then, and Buddhism has not yet
died out! Either this statement was not spoken by the Buddha, or else he
made a serious mistake. But given that nowhere else does the Buddha claim to
be able to predict the future in this way, it seems certain that this is not
an authentic saying. Anyone who is familiar with ancient mythic texts would
know that, invariably, prophecies are a disguised way of referring to their
own time, and only on the surface do they refer to the future.

Sometimes you might hear that the Buddha predicted that the Bhikkhuni
Sangha would die out after 500 years, and it is argued from this that the
Buddha intended the bhikkhunis to disappear. This is incorrect. The supposed
prophecy refers to Buddhism as a whole, not to the bhikkhunis, as anyone who
takes the time to read the text would know. In fact, it is now 2500 years,
and neither the Bhikkhuni Sangha nor Buddhism look like vanishing any time
soon.

Didn’t the Buddha make all sorts of extra, difficult rules for the nuns?

It is true that the list of rules for nuns is longer that that for monks.
But this is for many reasons. In some cases, the monks actually have the
same rules, but they are just not included in the main list. In other cases,
the number of rules is simply multiplied due to repetition. In such cases
the practical effect of the rule is not changed. In other cases the rules
address specific feminine issues, such as ensuring menstrual hygiene, or
guaranteeing the safety of the nuns. But where there are genuine differences
between the sets of rules, there is no hard and fast principle: in some
cases the monks’ rules are stricter, and in some cases the nuns’ rules are
stricter.

But the rules do subordinate the nuns to the monks, don’t they?

No. The Vinaya does not allow for any power-based relationship between
the monks and nuns. In other words, no monk, not even the entire community
of monks, has the right to order a bhikkhuni to do anything. In fact, there
are many rules that protect the nuns, for example, by forbidding the monks
to use nuns as domestic servants by having them wash or sew their robes for
them.

The Buddha set up the relationships between the male and female Sangha
based on mutual respect under the Vinaya. Bhikkhunis are included within the
original ‘Dual Sangha’ as set up by the Buddha, and managed according to the
‘Dual Vinaya’ accepted among all schools. So, in the relationships between
the male and female Sanghas, Vinaya is the guide. Each monk or nun must take
the Dhamma & Vinaya as the final authority, not the statements of any
individual monks.

There is a rule, however, that requires that the bhikkhunis bow to the
monks. This is a matter of etiquette, not power. Many bhikkhunis sincerely
respect this rule, as it honours the Bhikkhu Sangha, which was originally
the senior community. However, the authenticity of this rule is doubted by
modern scholars. In any case, the Buddha stated that this rule was laid down
in accord with the customs of the time, so many people believe this should
not apply today.

Anyway, the bhikkhunis are forbidden from teaching the bhikkhus, aren’t
they?

No. This is a misunderstanding based on a mistranslation of one of the
special rules for bhikkhunis. In fact, the rule forbids bhikkhunis from
criticizing bhikkhus, which probably refers to making accusations about
Vinaya matters. As far as teaching is concerned, there is no prohibition in
Vinaya. How could there be? The Buddha always encouraged us to learn Dhamma
whenever we can.

The bhikkhunis from the East Asian countries are Mahayana, so how can
they give ordination to Theravada bhikkhunis? After all, a chicken can’t lay
a duck egg!

This is an ideological position based on a series of misunderstandings.
Ideas such as ‘Theravada’ and ‘Mahayana’ are not found in the Vinaya, they
were invented by later generations. The actual historical situation is as
follows.

Originally the Sangha lived as one, following a unified code of conduct
(Vinaya) as prescribed by the Buddha. A few centuries after the Buddha’s
Parinibbana, the unified community broke up, forming the ‘18 schools’ of
Early Buddhism, one of which was the Theravada of Sri Lanka. (At this time,
Mahayana had not yet appeared.) Each school inherited the original Vinaya
and adapted it in minor details. But all Vinaya scholars who have studied
the matter, whether lay or monastic, agree that the essential aspects of the
Vinayas are compatible .

All bhikkhus and bhikkhunis are ordained under the ordination lineage and
procedures of the Vinayas of these early schools. The East Asian traditions
owe their lineage to the Dharmaguptaka school, while the Central Asian
traditions stem from the Mulasarvastivada. Hence from the Vinaya point of
view, there is no such thing as a ‘Mahayana’ bhikkhu or bhikkhuni.
‘Mahayana’ is a set of texts, doctrines, beliefs, and practices, but it has
never been an ordination lineage.

As we have seen, the ordination lineage of the bhikkhunis stems from Sri
Lanka, so it is a part of the same broad community as the Theravada. When
this lineage was introduced into China, the Vinaya masters of China and Sri
Lanka obviously decided that the ordination procedures of the schools were
compatible. Hence the first Chinese bhikkhuni ordinations were conducted
with Sri Lankan bhikkhunis using Dharmaguptaka rites.

Bhikkhuni ordinations in modern times simply reverse this ancient
precedent: bhikkhunis from the East Asian tradition, together with Theravada
bhikkhus, perform the ordination for women wishing to practice within the
Theravada tradition.

Bhikkhuni ordination is just a Western feminist imposition on Buddhist
culture!

As we have seen, bhikkhuni ordination is an intrinsic part of all
Buddhism since the beginning. This lapsed during medieval times, as Buddhism
slowly drifted away from its roots. In modern times, due to advances in
communication and learning, those roots are being rediscovered and the value
of the original teachings is increasingly recognized.

Of course, Western education and ideas have played a positive role in
this process. But by far the strongest bhikkhuni movements are in Taiwan,
Korea, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. The Western Sangha, in Theravada at least,
lags far behind Asia in accepting bhikkhunis.

And we must be careful how we use the word ‘feminist’. If we understand
feminism to mean a compassionate understanding of the special kinds of
suffering endured by women, and a positive effort to redress such suffering,
then the Buddha was the first feminist!

If the case for bhikkhunis is as compelling as you say, why do even great
meditation masters oppose bhikkhuni ordination?

This is a difficult question, one that I have struggled with for years. I
find a key to understanding in some texts where the arahants are criticized
by the Buddha. We read of the Buddha admonishing, say, Venerable Sariputta,
or Venerable Moggallana, or other the great disciples, for their lack of
understanding in matters relating to the organization and management of the
Sangha, or its relations with the lay community. It seems that, while they
have full understanding as to their own minds, even awakened beings can lack
full insight into matters of social dynamics.

The Buddhist Sangha forms its own culture, with its own language,
ideology, history, and forms. All those who enter this culture are immersed
in these values. Such views, inherited in the early years of monastic life,
will tend to remain and no amount of meditation will change them, until
there is an active process of dialogue and questioning within the community.
The very fact that meditation prowess is revered so highly makes it very
difficult to challenge the opinions of the masters, even when those opinions
relate to matters other than meditation, such as the history of ordination
lineages.

This is not to say that meditation is useless in this context. It is only
that meditation by itself cannot change our views. What it can do, however,
is to enable us to be more open and reflective around our views. We will
understand the conditioned and provisional nature of our opinions, and be
much more accepting of other perspectives.

But you have to admit that if there are bhikkhunis in a monastery, there
is a big danger that the passions will be aroused?

This is usually not a problem, for we have the Vinaya as our protection.
This ensures that monks and nuns can never enter into a situation of
intimacy. Monks and nuns live in separate monasteries, or else in the same
monastery, but in separate quarters.

Of course, no protection is total, and it is inevitable that from time to
time monks and nuns will fall in love and disrobe. But this happens all the
time anyway. Monks fall in love with laywomen, nuns with laymen, monks with
laymen, nuns with laywomen, and all the other lurid combinations best left
unimagined. Experience shows that, in a committed monastic environment, the
proportion of monks who disrobe to get together with a nun is minimal. In
the very rare cases when it happens, we should simply wish them the best,
and hope they can continue to thrive in the Dhamma.

To my mind, a far bigger problem is that, when entirely separated from
nuns, monks may not learn to respect women as equal partners in the
spiritual life. Monks are able to relate to women as a mother: the wonderful
donors who bring food every day. We see women who are like a daughter: the
enthusiastic girls and young women who come to learn and meditate. We treat
women like a lover: the temptress, the danger to be feared and guarded
against. But never can we relate to women as a sister: a friend as we grow
together through life. I think this is very sad, and is our great loss.

Actually I was convinced about how wonderful the idea of bhikkhunis was
as soon as I heard of their existence. I only asked those questions to stir
you up!

Well, that’s good, I enjoy a good stirring. But make sure you also stir
up any monks who don’t support bhikkhunis! [^]

"Although history would indicate that in the past there have been both
bhikkhunis and samaneris in [the lands now known as] Thailand, from the
time of the Ashokan missions of Arahantas Sona and Uttara to Suvannabhumi,
up until the Ayutthaya Period, and even into the twentieth century [in the
northern regions], there is little or no public knowledge nor a sense of
connectedness to this distant and more recent past."

This sentence within "Mining for Gold" has elicited significant surprise,
interest and curiosity amongst both friends and eminent fellow monastic
Sangha members who have read it, particularly those who have lived in
Thailand for many years, but "never had a clue." The information that I've
come upon in the past years has largely been brought forth by the simple
merit of the interest stimulated by the rare appearance of a female form
clothed in the patchwork saffron robe, both during my time in Thailand and
elsewhere amongst the Thai people, scholars and Sangha members. For those
mentioned above who have requested sharing knowledge of the details, they
are laid forth here for reflection and consideration. As the information is
substantial and deviates from the main theme and flow of "Mining for Gold"
it is set forth separately in this appendix. Recognizing that the work shown
here with this important subject is barely a beginning and highly
inadequate, it is my hope that, as a beginning, it might at least encourage
an opening of ideas and views, as well as further research and publication.

A Weaving of Threads

Like weaving threads together, the lines of a sketch or beginning to lay
out pieces of a puzzle, I will lay out what I have come across for
consideration. The clues span a vast period of time, from roughly the 3rd
century BCE through to the 20th century, a period of perhaps
2,300 years, nearly as long as Buddhist history itself. I will divide it
roughly into three sections as mentioned in the "Mining for Gold" text: (1)
the Ancient period or time of the Ashokan missions of Sona and Uttara to
Suvannabhumi, (2) the middle period of various "Thai" kingdoms up until the
founding of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya, and (3) the period of more recent
history reaching into the twentieth century and modern times.

Ancient Period

The first references to bhikkhunis in the lands now known as Thailand
come from the records of the Ashokan missions of the Arahanta Theras Sona
and Uttara to Suvannabhumi, the ancient and famed "Land of Gold." Although
the exact boundaries of the ancient Land of Gold are unknown, the Thai
people have strong emotional ties to the history of this land that may be
seen in many facets of their culture, in the ancient name of one of their
provinces, Suphanbhuri, and the modern, new Suvarnabhumi International
Airport. Historians say the Land of Gold roughly covered the territories now
known as Burma, Thailand and Laos, as well as parts of Southern China,
Cambodia and Northern Malaysia.

The journey of Sona and Uttara Thera to Suvannabhumi is recorded in the
important Pali text the Samantapasadika, in the ancient Sri Lankan
chronicles the Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa as well as in the
Vinaya commentary Sudassanavinayavibhasa. [1] According to the
Samantapasadika, the Theras "ordained 3,500 men and 1,500 women,
establishing the Buddhadhamma." In Thai Buddhist historical texts, this
record appears in the Thai Ruan Song Pra Thera Bye Prakat Pra Sasana Ni
Thang Prathet – About Theras Going to Teach Buddhism Abroad where
we find that:

"Youths in the group of royal males of the number of 3,500 ordained.
The royal female youths in the number of 1,500 ordained. Thus, the Theras
firmly established Buddhism in the area of Suvannabhumi. Thereafter, the
young people of the royal heritage received the Dhamma lineage of Sona and
Uttara." [2]

The exact location of the ordinations is disputed. I have no intent to
propose which site might have actually been the real and true location of
the Suvannabhumi bhikkhus' and bhikkhunis' ordination or whether the Ashokan
Missions really happened as recorded, but rather to show that the Thai
people themselves lay both historical and emotional claim to the site
that their own Buddhist textual records indicate was the place where 1,500
women were ordained as bhikkhunis from the very beginning of the
recorded establishment of Buddhism in their land.

The Thai people regularly speak of the location of this great happening,
the foundation of the Buddhism in their land, as having occurred at the
"First Chedi" Nakhon Pathom, thousands of people coming to pay their
reverence to the site daily for this reason. The Burmese people locate the
site in Burma at Thaton where there is also a shrine devoted to this most
famous and venerable of occurrences. However, according to research done by
Ven. Ratanavali Bhikkhuni, contemporary Thai Buddhist historians locate the
site of the first ordinations at the ancient Thai city of Nakonsi Thammarat
(Nagara Sri Dharmarajasima). According to interviews conducted with
local Nakonsi Thammarat historians, it is well known that Buddhism first
entered Suvannabhumi in what is now known as Nakonsi Thammarat, not Nakhon
Pathom. The Thai Tipitaka reference above is anthropologically linked to the
Nakonsi Thammarat Yak Chedi (Yaksa Chaitya) through the accompanying
Tipitaka story of the Theras displaying their power over the supernatural
forces the people had feared and worshipped by subduing the Yaksas (ogres,
cannibals, flesh-eating giants) before teaching the Dhamma and giving
ordination. The main Nakonsi Thammarat Chedi, built in Sri Lankan style, is
also linked by local history directly to the Tipitaka history and the
arrival of the Theras Sona and Uttara. It is recorded to have been built in
conjuct with the Sri Lankans to commemorate the site where Indian Prince
Kumar and Indian Princess Hemachala (whose statuary images remain there)
came with a tooth relic of the Buddha, now enshrined there in memory of it
being the site of the establishment of the Buddha Sasana. This is confirmed
by Phra Raj Suwan Maytee in Pan Din Ton: Nakon Pathom dan gert
Prabuddhasasana.

Neither the Samantapasadika Pali nor the Thai account say what the
noblemen and women were "ordained" (Thai: buat) as. However, by the
famed statement that "Buddhism has only been established in a land when both
sons and daughters of that land have been ordained [as bhikkhus and
bhikkhunis,]"[3] it may be inferred that it was upon such ordination
that the pronouncement "the Buddhadhamma has been established" was made in
the end of the Samantapasadika account. This is confirmed by the less
well-known Sudassanavinayavibhasa which does specify that the men and
women were in fact ordained as bhikkhus and bhikkhunis.

Another point of interest is that according to the Thai Vinaya Pitaka
version of the Samantapasadika, as related by former Thai Senator
Rabiaprat Pongpanit in her 2002 report to the Thai Senate, both men and
women appear to have been ordained by the Bhikkhu Sangha alone, as there is
no mention of bhikkhunis among the "five bhikkhus, samaneras, upasakas,
brahmans, high ranking government officials and members of royalty totaling
thirty-eight persons" [4] who comprised the Ashokan mission. In fact, all of
the Ashokan mission records in which both men and women are recorded as
ordained in various countries surrounding India by the Arahanta missionaries
following their teaching, other than the Sri Lankan record, follow this same
pattern. This does not mean that the calling upon of bhikkhunis to perform
the dual ordination did not happen, as this part of the historical records
could certainly have been lost in many cases. However, the history in its
current form could also be seen as giving precedent, in the behavior of
numerous Arahanta Dhamma teachers of great renown, to the ordination of both
women and men as bhikkhus and bhikkhunis by the Bhikkhu Sangha in the
absence of a Bhikkhuni Sangha.

The Middle Period: the Kingdoms of Pattani, Sukhothai, Lanna-thai and
Ayutthaya

According to the general Buddhist history of this area in the middle
period, there were bhikkhus and bhikkhunis of various Buddhist schools and
traditions – Theravada (Sthaviravada or Hinayana), Mahayana and Vajrayana –
throughout the lands of South and Southeast Asia. Middle period references
specifically to bhikkhunis in the area that is now named Thailand come from
the Pattani, Lanna-thai and Sukhothai periods as well as the Ayutthaya
period.

Pattani (3rd – 17th Century CE)

Moving through time, we come to the Kingdom of Pan Pan, not far removed
from modern Nakonsi Thammarat. Pan Pan was later know by the Thais as
Pattani and is considered by them to be one of their ancient historic
kingdoms. Earlier historical records of Pan Pan span the 3rd
through the 7th centuries of the Common Era; later records of
Pattani extend through the 17th century, up until the absorption
of the kingdom in the modern Bangkok period.

In his work Nuns of Southeast Asia (3.6), Peter Skilling relates
this finding:

"[In] Ma Tuan-lin's description of the Kingdom of P'an P'an in his
Wen-hsien Tung-k'ao: 'There are ten monasteries where Buddhist monks
and nuns study their canon. They eat all types of meat, but restrain from
wine.' Wheatley and others have concluded that P'an-p'an was located in
the vicinity of the Bay of Bandon in peninsular Siam."

The record is estimated to be related to the 7th century CE.
The word "nun" in the record is the Chinese character ni commonly
used as an abbreviation of the three Chinese characters bi-ku-ni.
Although the record is Chinese, the description of the food consumed by the
monks and nuns does not bear the marks of the discipline of the Chinese
Mahayana schools, thus it seems that these female Buddhist monastics would
have belonged to one of the Sthaviravadan or Theravadan schools.

Sukhothai (13th – 15th Century CE)

According to Thai records as related by the Research Department of
Rajavidyalaya Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya Royal Thai University
(hereafter abbreviated as "Mahachula") there are Sukhothai records of
bhikkhunis ordained by the Bhikkhu Sangha alone. The question has been
raised by scholars whether the (perhaps) original practice of ordaining
bhikkhunis by the Bhikkhu Sangha alone may have continued in Thailand from
the Ashokan period, rather than being replaced shortly after the original
ordinations by the dual-ordination practice. Since these bhikkhunis did not
have dual ordination, modern monastic and lay Thai Buddhist scholars have
affirmed they may not be considered to have constituted a legitimate
historical Bhikkhuni Sangha, having not met the full criteria for ordination
as bhikkhunis. However, it may be noted that according to Vinaya, in the
time of the Buddha, neither early bhikkhunis ordained by the Bhikkhu Sangha
alone nor even those ordained by the "bhikkhu rite," rather than the
"bhikkhuni rite," were to be considered not ordained.

Lanna-thai (13th – 16th Century CE)

In Nuns of Southeast Asia at 3.6, Skilling further relates that:

"in Lanna Thai literature (Catalogue of Palm Leaf Texts on Microfilm at
the Social Research Institute, Chiang Mai) there are two texts entitled
Tamnan Bhikkhuni Dona and Tamnan Sindu Bhikkhuni, which from
their titles are the biographies of bhikkhunis. These bhikkhunis do not
seem to be listed in the Tipitaka – at least they are not listed in
Malasekara's DPPN, thus there is the speculation that they might be later
bhikkhunis' histories." [5]

As these bhikkhunis' names appear to not be among those dating from the
earliest days of the Indian Sangha, there is the expectation that rare and
precious records of later bhikkhunis, whether from Thailand or from other
locales may have been discovered. It was also in the Lanna-thai period that
Sanghanusati chants including the recollection of the virtues of the
Thirteen Foremost Bhikkhuni Disciples were composed and their recitation
called for by the royalty for the blessings of the populace and nation.
Considering the formal veneration payed to the Arahant bhikkhunis by even
the great kings of the Buddha's time, it might be seen as ironic that in
2007 CE, bhikkhuni Arahanta statuary images from the Lanna-thai period were
removed to Wat Songdhammakalyani (a bhikkhuni temple) from the Lanna-thai
monastery where they were long enshrined, as modern local monks felt it
inappropriate for men to show veneration to their female forms.

Ayutthaya Period (14th – 18th Century CE)

Further bhikkhuni records were spoken of at Mahachula, recovered
incidentally while conducting research related to the exchange of the
upasampada ordination between Thailand and Sri Lanka, in particular the
ordinations which facilitated the (re)establishment of the Thai Sangha upon
the founding of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya. These records indicate the
existence of pre-Lankavamsa Bhikkhu and Bhikkhuni Sanghas in Thailand, up to
the entry into the Ayutthaya period, at which time these Sanghas were ended
and a new Bhikkhu-only Sangha established with royal patronage and support
from the Bhikkhu Sangha lineage of Sri Lanka.

By way of explanation, it is recorded that the Kingdom of Ayutthaya was
named after the Indian Kingdom of Ayodhya, famed birthplace of the Hindu God
Rama and the "first man" Manu. In its ruling secular and religious
leadership structure, the Kingdom of Ayutthaya showed a great harmonizing of
the religious teachings and practices of its time: Brahmanistic or Hindu,
and both Mahayana and Theravadan Buddhist. The king was thus availed of both
the divine right to rule via the Brahman priests as well as the Buddhist
messianic right as a "wheel turning monarch" and an incarnation of the
Bodhisattva Phra Ariya Maitreya – the future Buddha. These hardly seem to
have been unique ideas; in the centuries both preceding and following,
history records many Asian rulers, both Thai and non-Thai, adopting similar
means in various combinations of these same prevailing teachings.

The records relate the causal reasoning behind the ending of the
Bhikkhuni Sangha as "inappropriate relationship" with men and the Bhikkhu
Sangha. This is interpreted by some scholars to mean that there were
allegations of sexual misconduct. Indeed, this seems to have been a topic of
literally mortal concern during the Ayutthaya period, as Skilling has found
records of Buddhist monks being regularly punished to death by public
roasting over fire for allegations made of sexual misconduct. For this
reason, foreign documenters observed and noted that only women past their
childbearing years were allowed to respectably don even white robes in the
Kingdom of Ayutthaya. [6] Other scholars understand this statement regarding
"inappropriateness of the bhikkhunis" to mean that it was considered
inappropriate for women to have the status of Brahman priests [7]
within the social/religious/ideological framework of the Ayodhyan
Brahmanical tenants of the Manudharmashastra, a system of philosophy
and social order which had spread at that time from India to Thailand. This
system by law subordinates women first to their fathers, then husbands and
finally sons, and does not allow for the possibility of women's salvation
other than through the "sacrifices" or the merit offered by their sons.
Finally, there has been the further speculation that the cessation of the
previous Sangha was simply, if nothing else, an oft-repeated political move
to ensure the loyalty of the clergy to the sovereign, and thus the
solidarity of the kingdom.

As apparent in the Kingdom of Siam exhibit shown in 2004 CE in the
United States at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, the writings and
meticulous drawings of at least one foreign Jesuit missionary in Ayutthaya
nonetheless still record the presence of undoubtedly feminine, [8]
saffron-robed, shaven-headed monastics sitting on raised-platform seats in
distinctly Thai-temple environs during that period. [9] Skilling finds
records of robed Buddhist renunciate women in those times still addressed as
bhagini – "sisters," the Pali/Sanskrit form of respectful address
used by both the Buddha and Theras, as well as called nang-chee –
"lady renunciates," a melding of Thai and Brahmanical terms and the
precursor of the modern, white-robed mae-chee.

According to scholars, it may be reasonably assumed that some numbers of
both bhikkhus and bhikkhunis of lineages and traditions from the
pre-Ayutthaya period would have continued to survive in areas of what is now
known as Thailand outside of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya. This may be confirmed
by later records of Bhikkhuni Sangha in the regions that are now known as
the surrounding countries of Burma, China and Cambodia.

Pre-modern and Modern Period

Looking for evidence of the continuation of kasaya-robed Buddhist
monastic women beyond the Kingdom of Ayutthaya, such evidence may be found
in nearly all directions.

In the northwest of what is now Thailand, Mon records include bhikkhunis
into the 14th century CE. In the northeast, records from Lao
territories show yellow-robed female monastics into the 20th
century. In the north, Thai-Yuan records of the Yuan Special Autonomous
District in Southern China show bhikkhunis contemporarily. The Thai peoples
of at least one locale in India also preserve the last remnants of a
yellow-robed women's monastic tradition.

To the west in neighboring Myanmar, the Burmese Chronicles of the
King's Proclamations, as translated by Dr. Tan Tun in Ideas and Views,
shows royal permission granted as late as 1788 CE to women over age nineteen
to ordain as bhikkhunis. Additional laws prevented the king's slaves from
becoming bhikkhunis and, as late as 1810 CE, required both the bhikkhus' and
bhikkhunis' discipline to be royally monitored. It may be noted here that,
rather than the "thousand year gap" regularly spoken of, these records leave
a gap of less than 200 years [10] in the tradition of full ordination
for women in Southeast Asia.

To the east there are more recent Thai-Lao records as well. Most
well-known is the travel diary of Hermann Norden, as published by Kamala
Tiyavanich in the chapter "Sisterhood of the Yellow Robe" in her book
Buddha in the Jungle. Norden writes in his 1920s travel diary for the
Royal Geographical Society of Great Britian of his visit to the isolated
Muang You people:

"At the bonzerie (monastery or nunnery), I was astonished to see
young women in yellow robes and with shaven heads; a Buddhist Sisterhood.
They were busily sweeping an already tidy yard; an older woman
superintending the work."

To the north, the records are not only recent, but contemporary. Dr. Hua
Che Min, a Chinese scholar of Sinhalese language affiliated with the
language department at the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, has authored a
book in Sinhalese about the Thai-lue people's religious lives and practices
in the Sip Song Panna Special Autonomous Region in Yunnan Province, Southern
China. This book, Theravada Buddhism in China (in Singhalese),
records, as of the year 1991 CE, the number of temples and bhikkhus and
bhikkhunis of both Mahayana and Theravada traditions, reporting that they
have been largely untouched by the Chinese government. Phra Vutthichai
Bhikkhu, in his 2006 visit to the area to support the renovation of the Thai
people's Theravadan temples, confirmed the reports of the book and reported
that the temples look remarkably Thai.

Not only in China and in the regions surrounding modern Thailand, but in
the homeland of Buddhism as well, the ethnic Thai peoples seem to have been
among the last to devotedly preserve the remnants of their yellow-robed
monastic traditions for women. In Yasodhara Magazine, Venerable
Dhammananda Bhikkhuni reports her recent discovery of the presence of a
tradition of saffron-robed female monastics in at least one ethnic Thai
people's community in India. [11]

Once again returning to within the heart of the Thai Kingdom, images of
saffron-robed women in Buddhist monastic life do not entirely disappear in
the Ratanakosin Era, but may be found in the arts and histories related to
the Royal Family.

Many Thais might be surprised to learn that the heritage of the early
Arahanta bhikkhunis and the later bhikkhunis' missions were both affirmed
and royally honored in Thailand. In 1836 CE, King Nang Klao – Rama III,
established Wat Thepthidarom (Pali: Devadhita-arama) in Bangkok, the
Monastery of the Heavenly Daughter, named for his beloved eldest daughter
who served efficiently as his personal secretary, Crown Princess
Apsonsudathep. The monastery's bhikkhuni Vihara houses statuary images of
the Founding Mother of the Bhikkhuni Sangha Mahapajapati Gotami and
fifty-two bhikkhuni Arahantas, the images dedicated to his daughter (whose
health was ailing) and his fifty-two children. The princess also contributed
from her personal fortune to the construction. King Rama III also undertook
the 16 year 7 month restoration of the Ayutthayan period monastery Wat
Bodharam (commonly known as Wat Pho), initially begun by King Rama I when he
established it as a first grade royal monastery in 1788 CE. King Rama III's
son Prince Laddawan led in the restoration of the Western Vihara, the famed
Temple of the Reclining Buddha, on whose walls may still be found the
Mahavamsa mural paintings of the arrival of Ashokan daughter Sanghamitta
with the Bodhi tree to Sri Lanka, her meeting with King Devanampiyatissa and
her ordination of Queen Anula with her company of 500 women, establishing
the Buddhasasana. Other walls in the sanctuary of the Reclining Buddha are
covered by extensive and elaborate mural paintings of the thirteen foremost
bhikkhuni disciples of the Buddha and their stories, as well as paintings of
the ten foremost laymen and laywomen disciples. This great restoration was
undertaken by the king to maintain Wat Pho as "a center of both arts and
knowledge for the Thai people, where descendants could look indefinitely."

In the years that followed however, few have even known to look. The
doors of the Bhikkhuni Vihara in the Monastery of the Heavenly Daughter
generally remain locked. As robed, shaven-headed images of bhikkhus and
bhikkhunis may look similar without close examination, even well-educated
monks living for years at Wat Pho may never know of the content and meaning
of its full-wall mural paintings, not to mention the throngs of tourists
that pass through its halls each day. The majority of modern records that
are often seen related to ordained women in the saffron robes and the Thai
royalty might be considered tragic.

Perhaps the most famous is the diary of Anna Leonowens and the Western
movies The King and I and Anna and the King based upon it.
Anna Owens was the British governess to the Royal court of Siam from
1862-1865 CE, during the reign of King Mongkut – Rama IV, who was a
highly-disciplined Buddhist monk himself for many years and founder of the
Dhammayuta Nikaya (a reformed monastic order) before ascending to the
throne. In her book Romance of the Harem, she relates the pitiful
story of the favorite consort-wife of the king, Lady Tuptim, who was engaged
to be married when she was chosen for the royal harem. Her fiancé, Pilat,
ordained as a Buddhist monk after her leaving, and when Lady Tuptim felt
trapped by the confines of her palace life she escaped and secretly ordained
as a novice at Phra Pilat's temple. Upon her discovery there, although
affirming purity, the two were tried and sentenced to death by fire. We can
only guess the impact that such an event may have had upon the thoughts and
views of the royal princes and their heirs, amongst them, Prince
Chulalongkorn, the son of King Mongkut who was later to become Rama V, the
king to follow, and Prince Wachirayan, the son who was to become Sangharaja.

Under the reign of the beloved and revered King Chulalongkorn – Rama V
(the son of King Mongkut tutored by Anna Leonowens while a prince) – Siam
lost border territories to colonial powers, to France for Laos and Cambodia,
to Britain for Burma. However the King was able to maintain independence,
declaring Siam an independent kingdom in 1886. A son of King
Chulalongkorn's, Rama VI – King Vajiravudh – reigned from 1910 to 1925,
during which time he increased the westernization begun by his father and
grandfather, including mandatory primary school education and a system of
standardized basic education for the Buddhist monastic Sangha. Prince
Wachirayan (Vajirananavarovasa) was appointed and empowered by King
Vajiravudh as Sangharaja – "Sangha King" or "Supreme Patriarch" of
Siam.

Texts authored by Prince Patriarch Vajirananavarorasa for the progress
and knowledge of Buddhism and education of the Sangha in the monastic
discipline of the Vinaya included the Vinaya Mukha and its
English-language translation Entrance to the Vinaya. As these texts
are often studied in place of the Vinaya itself, they have led (and still
continue to lead) the vast majority of Thai-educated Buddhist monks to hold
beliefs expressed therein, such as: a "person who wishes for upasampada
(full bhikkhu or bhikkhuni ordination) must be male" and "if one has
committed serious offences or one is a woman, then such persons cannot
receive the upasampada and their ordination would be known as
vatthu-vipatti, literally, defect[ive]." [12] Later, in Volume III of
the Vinaya Mukha we find two personal speculative theories propounded
by its author: the first, that the Bhikkhuni Sangha "existed temporarily,
for no great length of time… [and] probably disappeared in Lord Buddha's own
days;" [13] and the second, that from the time of Sanghamitta Theri,
daughter of Emperor Ashoka, "it is agreed that the bhikkhunis disappeared."
[14] In this case, the "agreement" would seem to have become the
self-fulfilling prophecy for a nation. With a concerted effort made to
spread and establish a statewide system of secular and monastic education,
lay children, samaneras, and bhikkhus, from the early 1900s until the
present, all came to be educated that the Bhikkhuni Sasana had died out in
India not long after the Buddha's time, the last bhikkhuni being Sanghamitta
Theri.

Additionally, according to both Buddhist monastic scholars and Buddhist
historians such as Tiyavanich, in the twentieth century, diverse, local,
ethnic traditions of Buddhism in Thailand were legally replaced by State
Buddhism for the sake of a Unified Thai Nation and Sangha. Empowered by the
Sangha Acts of 1903 and 1928, both secular and religious laws were made
forbidding the ordination of women due to a perceived political threat. [15]
For the sake of a centralized Thai State and uniformity of Sangha standards,
although a divergence from the Vinaya, from that time it became illegal for
local Elder Buddhist monks to give ordination within their local Sangha
traditions and lineages to even men, unless they were approved,
trained and certified as Upajjhayas (preceptors) by State Authority.

As a final note, scholar Peter Koret is currently working on the
histories of several Thai women ordained as bhikkhunis and disrobed by law
during the early 1900s in the Sangha Acts period above. These include the
two daughters of outspoken political critic Narin Klung (one of the
political threats mentioned above) who were ordained as bhikkhuni and
samaneri along with a number of other women. Due to their father's political
conflicts, the daughters, Sara and Jongdi, were arrested and most of their
Sangha disrobed, while the two sisters were taken to prison where the elder
sister was disrobed by force. When released from prison the daughters
maintained their monastic life but changed the color of their robes. Their
Sangha ended one day when the elder sister, Phra Bhikkhuni Sara, was
kidnapped by a rider on horseback while she was walking on almsround. Due to
the negative reaction to that event within the Sangha, the then Sangharaja
of Thailand passed a law forbidding any and all Thai bhikkhus from acting as
preceptors in ordaining women as either samaneris, sikkhamanas, or
bhikkhunis.

Nonetheless, twenty-eight years later, in 1956 CE, Thai lady Voramai
Kabilsingh received ordination as a samaneri from Phra Prommuni of Wat
Bawanniwet, the King's own ordination master. Although she wore light yellow
robes of a different color than Thai bhikkhus, in the 1960s she was charged
with the illegal act of impersonating a bhikkhu. After learning of the
continuation of Sanghamitta Theri's line in the Chinese Dharmagupta
bhikkhuni lineage of Taiwan, in 1971 she traveled for the full bhikkhuni
ordination there, receiving the ordained name of Shih Ta-Tao Fa-Shr –
Venerable Mahabodhi Dhammacarya. In the year 2001, thirty years after her
full ordination, Venerable Mother Mahabodhi's daughter Dr. Chatsumarn
Kabilsingh, herself a respected Buddhist scholar and teacher, traveled to
Sri Lanka to receive samaneri ordination and two years later the bhikkhuni
ordination upon the revival of the tradition of the bhikkhuni upasampada
there. Given the ordained name Bhikkhuni Dhammananda, her ordination
together with the beneficent works of others, has paved the way for a
gradually but steadily increasing number of Thai women, both Theravadan and
Mahayana, to be ordained as samaneris and bhikkhunis both in Sri Lanka, in
Taiwan, and once again in Thailand. As their stories are many, they will not
be told here. [16] Fortunately, it is the very spirit of further research
into the Buddhist texts coupled with dedication to the higher purpose of the
Buddhasasana and the welfare of the Monastic Sangha, so championed by Kings
Mongkut and his sons King Chulalongkorn and Prince Patriarch
Vajirananavarorasa, which has brought this about. In the year 2003 CE, after
extensive research and review by the Thai Senate, the secular law banning
women's ordination in Thailand was found unconstitutional and revoked as
contrary to freedom of religion.

In Conclusion: A Different Definition

Thus, as I have been told by knowledgeable Thai researchers and Buddhist
academics, the common statement "Thailand has never had a Bhikkhuni
Sangha" or "Thailand has never had bhikkhunis," to current
knowledge, might be more accurately and correctly stated as:

Within the domains of the current Chakri dynasty of Rama kings, since
its foundation; that is, in the Ratanakosin Era from the Ayutthaya Period
through the Bangkok period (1782 CE –present), Thailand has not yet had a
royally- or State-sanctioned and supported Bhikkhuni Sangha with
dual ordination.

This is not to say that there have never been bhikkhunis amongst the
ethnic Thai peoples, nor that the lands, now known as Thailand, have never
been host to the Bhikkhuni Sangha.

In fact, the pattern that appears within the historical threads, when
woven together, does seem to tell quite a different story. [^]

*

Notes

[1] A text of Sri Lankan origin taken to China and translated by
Sanghabhadra about the time of Buddhagosa. The Chinese translation of the
title of this Singhalese Vinaya commentary has been retranslated into Pali
as the Sudassanavinayavibhasa.

[3] Although this statement has been attributed to Ashokan son Mahinda
Thera in his words to Sri Lankan King Devanampiyatissa regarding his reason
for calling for his bhikkhuni sister Sanghamitta Theri and her peers to
establish the Bhikkhuni Sangha, it is based upon various quotations from the
Tipitaka. As amalgamated and paraphrased briefly from Analayo's Women's
Renunciation in Early Buddhism:

Numerous early canonical passages concur with the clear statement given
in the Mahaparinibbana Sutta that the Bhikkhuni Sangha is an
integral part of Buddhist community, particularly the Lakkhana Sutta
and the Pasadika Sutta of the Digha Nikaya. Even those
outside the Buddhist order apparently perceived the existence of
proficient female Buddhist monastics [bhikkhunis] as indispensable for the
completeness of the Buddha's Sasana, as in the Mahavaccagotta Sutta
of the Majjhima Nikaya, were we find the wanderer Vaccagotta, soon
to enter the Buddhist Sangha and become an Arahanta, proclaiming that:
"If, in this teaching, only the Reverend Gotama and the bhikkhus were
accomplished, but there would not be accomplished bhikkhunis, then this
Holy Life, would be deficient in that respect" – (sace ... imam dhammam
bhavañc' eva Gotamo aradhako abhavissa bhikkhu ca ... no ca kho
bhikkhuniyo aradhika abhavimsu, evam idam brahmacariyam aparipuram
abhavissa ten' angena.) The degree to which the existence of the
bhikkhunis is integral to the welfare of the Buddha Sasana is highlighted
in Samyutta Nikaya16.13: "bhikkhu bhikkhuniyo upasaka
upasikayo satthari ... dhamme ... sanghe ... sikkhaya ...samadhismim
sagarava viharanti sappatissa. Ime kho ... pañca dhamma saddhammassa
hitiya asammosaya anantaradhanaya samvattanti." The conditions that
lead to the duration of the Dhamma after the Buddha has passed away are
treated in the Anguttara Nikaya which states these requisite
conditions to be that "the four assemblies be respectful towards
the Teacher, the Teaching, the Community, the training and towards each
other" – (bhikkhu bhikkhuniyo upasaka upasikayo satthari ... dhamme
... sanghe ... sikkhaya... aññamaññam sagarava viharanti sappa issa. Ayam
kho ... paccayo yena Tathagate parinibbute saddhammo cira hitiko hoti.)
According to the Dakkhinavibhanga Sutta, from the perspective of
merit, a gift given to the Ubhoto Sangha comprised of both bhikkhus and
bhikkhus is superior to that given to the Bhikkhu Sangha alone, thus the
absence of the Bhikkhuni Sangha would result in a deficiency of the Order
as a recipient of gifts. Finally, in Samyutta Nikaya 42.7 we find
that, in addition to being treated as superior recipients of offerings,
the bhikkhus and bhikkhunis are reckoned together when it comes to
receiving teachings, as they constitute the superior field for the
Buddha's instructions – ("seyyathapi ... khettam aggam evam eva mayham
bhikkhu-bhikkhuniyo.")

[4] Samantapasadika 62-63.

[5] The translation of these texts into Thai was commissioned by Ven.
Dhammananda Bhikkhuni in July 2007.

[6] Skilling – Nuns of Southeast Asia

[7] In the Buddha's teaching, a person rightly becomes a Brahman (holy)
neither by birth-caste nor by gender, but rather by their own virtuous and
noble deeds.

[8] Due to the distinctive double circle breast motif

[9] The author here wonders whether this may have been a drawing of the
fabled royal Ayutthayan princess who secretly fled the palace life to be
ordained as a bhikkhuni and live the monastic life against the wishes of her
father the King.

[10] The eminent teacher of Burmese Master Mahasi Sayadaw, Mingun Jetavan
Sayadaw's 1949 CE reasoned proposal for the reestablishment of the Bhikkhuni
Sasana in Burma (although not accepted at that time) thus seems to have
followed upon no more than 139 years lapse of the Southeast Asian Bhikkhuni
Sangha.

[11] See www.thaibhikkhunis.org – Yasodhara Magazine, "back issues."

[12] Entrance to the Vinaya I, pgs 4-5 on fulfilling conditions
(sampatti) for ordination. Thai version published in 1903.

[13] Entrance to the Vinaya III, pg 268. Thai version published in
1921, English in 1983.

[14] Entrance to the Vinaya III, pg 269. ""

[15] According to Mahachula, until that time Chinese Mahayana traditions
in Thailand still had both Bhikkhu and Bhikkhuni Sanghas in Thailand, but
with the establishment of these laws, they voluntarily gave up their
practice of ordaining women.

[16] Many of these women have been awarded as "Outstanding Women in
Buddhism" in observance of the United Nation's International Women's Day at
the United Nations in Bangkok. Their information may be available through
Outstanding Women in Buddhism Awards Secretary General Dr. Tavivat
Puntarigvivat or Founder Venerable Rattanavali Bhikkhuni. [^]

[3]

RESEARCH REGARDING THE
LINEAGE OF BHIKSUNI ORDINATION

A Response to Necessary Research
Regarding the Lineage of Bhiksuni Vinaya

A. Question: Is it possible to establish full bhiksuni ordination
in accordance with the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya tradition that flourished in
Tibet?

Yes, the bhiksuni ordination could be performed in one of two
ways:

1. Bhiksuni Ordination by Mulasarvastivada Bhiksus Alone

The Buddha allowed bhiksus to ordain bhiksunis as shown by
the following Vinaya quotations:

a. Pali Theravada Vinaya

Mahaprajapti was ordained by receiving the eight gurudharmas from
the Buddha. Mahaprajapati then asked the Buddha how her 500 women followers
should be ordained and the Buddha said, "O monks, I allow bhikkhunis
to receive the upasampada from bhikkhus". (1)

b. Mulasarvastivada Vinaya

Tibetan

The first gurudharma is, "O Ananda, after women have received
ordination (pravrajya) and full ordination (upasanpada) from
the bhiksus, they should thoroughly understand the matter of being
a bhiksuni. O Ananda, in this regard, so that women may avoid
faults and not transgress, I announce this as the first gurudharma;
women should follow this training throughout their lives". (2)

Sanskrit

Same as above.(3)

Chinese

Same as above.(4)

c. Chinese Dharmagupta Vinaya

The fourth gurudharma is: "After having learned the precepts [for
two years], a Siksamana should take the full ordination (upasanpada)
from the Bhiksu Sangha". (5)

d. Chinese Sarvastivada Vinaya

The second gurudharma is: "A bhiksuni should take full
ordination from the Bhiksu Sangha". (6) In this case, bhiksus of the
Tibetan Mulasarvastivada Vinaya tradition alone could conduct the
bhiksuni ordination.

a. The advantage of this procedure is that it is simple and does not
require the involvement of other Buddhist traditions.

b. The disadvantage of this procedure is that the Vinaya sources do not
specify that bhiksunis can be ordained by bhiksus alone.
Furthermore, this procedure may be criticized as being incomplete by later
generations, just like the first ordination of Chinese bhiksunis in
357 C.E.

2. Bhiksuni Ordination by a Dual Sangha of Dharmagupta Bhiksunis
and Mulasarvastivada Bhiksus

a. Pali Theravada Vinaya

i. The sixth gurudharma is, "When, as a probationer, she has
trained in the six [sikkhamana] rules for two years, she should
seek the ordination from both Sanghas". (7)

ii. The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(8)

b. Mulasarvastivada Vinaya

Tibetan

The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis. The
Blessed One said, "Because Mahaprajapati and the other 500 Sakya women
accepted the eight gurudharmas, they went forth and took full
ordination; thus, they became bhiksunis. The other women need to be
ordained gradually". (9) It follows the karmavacana, i.e., the
procedure in which a woman becomes a Buddhist, an upasika, and a
monastic, including the gradual stages of ordination up to bhiksuni.
First, she is given the [basic] brahmacarya precept by a Sangha of
at least 12 bhiksunis, followed by ordination by two Sanghas: a
Bhiksuni Sangha of at least twelve bhiksunis and a Bhiksu Sangha of
at least ten bhiksus, in front of a karmakaraka who is a
bhiksu, by stating the name of her abbess (upadhyayika),
etc.(10)

Sanskrit

Same as above.(11)

Chinese

The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(12)
Mahaprajapati accepted the eight gurudharmas together with 500
women. After that, the Elder Upali asked the Buddha, and the Buddha said,
"Mahaprajapati accepted the eight gurudharmas as her going forth
and as her full bhiksuni ordination. What about other women? How
shall they go about it?" And the Buddha said, "After this, the women
should follow the sequence, according to the Dharma, to go forth and
receive ordination". But the women did not understand what was meant by
"go in sequence," so they asked the Buddha. And the Buddha said,
"Mahaprajapati, as the head and together with the 500 Sakya women,
accepted the eight gurudharmas and, in that way, went forth and
became fully ordained as bhiksunis. After that, the other women who
seek to go forth should do likewise and follow the sequence. If a woman
wants to go forth, she should go to a bhiksuni, pay respect to her,
and that bhiksuni should ask her whether there are any hindrances.
If there are no hindrances, she should accept her, give her three refuges
and the five precepts. [There follows an explanation of the three refuges,
five precepts] Eventually, she gives her full bhiksuni
ordination".(13)

c. Chinese Mahisasaka Vinaya

i. The fourth gurudharma is: "A Siksamana, after learning
the precepts, should take full ordination from both Sanghas". (14)
Mahaprajapati was ordained by receiving the eight gurudharmas.
After her, the next group of nuns was ordained by Mahaprajapati together
with ten bhiksus.

ii. The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(15)

d. Chinese Mahasanghika Vinaya

i. The second gurudharma is: "After two years of learning the [Siksamana]
precepts, a bhiksuni should take full ordination from both
Sanghas". (16)

ii. The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(17)

e. Chinese Sarvastivada Vinaya

The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(18)

f. Chinese Theravada Vinaya

i. The sixth gurudharma is: "After a sikkhamana has
trained in the six rules for two years, she should seek ordination from
both Sanghas". (19)

ii. The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhikkhunis.(20)

g. Chinese Dharmagupta Vinaya

The dual ordination procedure is prescribed for bhiksunis.(21). In
this case, ten Tibetan Mulasarvastivada bhiksus could conduct an
ordination together with twelve Dharmagupta bhiksunis. The
bhiksuni ordination rite could be recited in Tibetan, either using the
bhiksuni dual ordination manual that has been translated from Chinese
to Tibetan, or an ordination procedure compiled by Tibetan bhiksus
based on Tibetan sources. In the Tibetan Mulasarvastivada Vinaya, the
bhiksunis are ordained by twelve bhiksunis first, i.e. the
Bhiksuni Sangha transmits to the candidate the brahmacaryopasthana
vow.(22) Then ten bhiksus join the twelve bhiksunis together
to conduct the final bhiksuni ordination rite. Because the eight
parajikas and the three reliances, etc., are recited only by the
bhiksus, and are the same in the Dharmagupta and Mulasarvastivada, the
candidates can be said to receive the Mulasarvastivada precepts.

B. Question: To transmit the precepts, one must have those precepts
oneself or have precepts that are higher than those. Is the Bhiksu Sangha
alone, then, allowed to transmit the bhiksuni precepts?

Yes, because the bhiksu precepts are either considered to be
higher than the bhiksuni precepts or to be of one nature (ngo bo
gcig; ekabhava) with the bhiksuni precepts. This is so because:

1. It is said that if a bhiksu transforms into a female, then
that bhiksu automatically has the bhiksuni precepts and does
not need to receive ordination again. Similarly, if a bhiksuni
transforms into a male, he automatically has the bhiksu precepts and
does not need to receive them anew. (See addendum on gender transformation,
with a translation from the Pali canon, Vin. III 35, 1224.) This is a
similar passage in the Dharmagupta Vinaya: .At that time, a bhiksu
transformed into a female. The bhiksus asked the Buddha, "Should he
be expelled [from the Sangha]?" The Buddha said, "No, he should not be
expelled. He is allowed to be sent to the Bhiksuni Sangha, and keeps his
upadhyaya, his acarya and his previous ordination seniority". (23)

2. In the Pali Vinaya, it is said that the Bhikkhu Sangha alone
ordained the 500 women accompanying Mahapajapati and other women, too. These
ordinations were conducted on the advice of the Buddha himself. To transmit
these precepts, they did not need to be bhikkhunis. Later, after some
women felt embarrassed answering intimate questions in front of bhikkhus,
the Buddha is said to have instituted the procedure of having bhikkhuni
masters ask these questions, etc. This is clear from the Pali Vinaya,
considered by historians to be the earliest version of the Vinaya to be
written down.

3. At the First Council after the Buddha’s parinirvana, Bhiksu
Upali is said to have recited the whole Vinaya Pitaka. In this case, he must
have recited the Bhiksuni Pratimoksa Sutra, too. Upali was not
leading the posadha, but he recited the Bhiksuni Pratimoksa Sutra
as part of the compilation of the Buddha.s teachings. He was allowed to do
so, although he did not have the bhiksuni precepts. Similarly, the
Tibetan geshe studies include the study of the Bhiksuni Vinaya.

C. Question: Is it possible for Tibetan nuns to receive full bhiksuni
ordination in accordance with the Dharmagupta Vinaya tradition that
flourished in China, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, etc.?

Yes. The ordination could be performed by ten bhiksus and ten
bhiksunis of the Dharmagupta Vinaya tradition, whether from Taiwan,
Korea, Vietnam, or other countries, in accordance with the bhiksuni
upasanpada rite. In the Dharmagupta Vinaya, the bhiksunis are
first ordained by ten bhiksunis. Then these . basic Dharma.
bhiksunis (penfani) and the bhiksuni precept master go
before an assembly of ten bhiksus on the same day. Such an ordination
would be very easy to arrange.

Bhiksuni Ordination by Dharmagupta Bhiksus and Dharmagupta Bhiksunis

The bhiksuni ordination could be performed by bhiksus and
bhiksunis of the Dharmagupta tradition in accordance with the
bhiksuni upasanpada rite. In the Dharmagupta Vinaya, the bhiksunis
are ordained by ten bhiksunis and then go before an assembly of ten
bhiksus on the same day.

In this case, nuns of the Tibetan tradition could be ordained by
bhiksus and bhiksunis of the Dharmagupta Vinaya tradition. This
is the procedure that has been used to reestablish the Bhiksuni Sangha in
Sri Lanka. The first three groups of Sri Lankan bhiksunis were
ordained by bhiksus and bhiksunis of the Chinese or Korean
traditions.

Since 1998, ordinations have been conducted by Sri Lankan Theravada
bhikkhus together with Sri Lankan bhikkhunis, in accordance with
the Theravada bhikkhuni ordination rite. The Sri Lankan monks made
allowances for the newly ordained bhikkhunis to act as ordination
masters due to the special circumstances and because many of these
bhikkhunis had been ordained as ten precept nuns for 20 or more years.
The Sri Lankan bhikkhunis are now observing the 311 bhikkhuni
precepts of the Theravada tradition and are accepted in Sri Lankan society
as Theravada bhikkhunis. In the same way, nuns of the Tibetan
tradition could receive the bhiksuni ordination in the Dharmagupta
tradition and practice according to the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya. After
twelve years, they could perform the bhiksuni ordination together
with bhiksus of the Tibetan Mulasarvastivada tradition.

D. Question: Are there clear records indicating that the bhiksu
and bhiksuni lineages exist unbroken in East Asia?

Yes. Attached are texts documenting that: (1) the Chinese bhiksu
lineage that flourished in East Asia can be traced to Buddha Sakyamuni
himself;(24) and (2) the bhiksuni lineage can be traced to the first
Chinese bhiksuni Ching Chien (Jingjian) in 357 C.E. Texts documenting
both of these lineages are enclosed herewith.(25)

The Chinese master Daohai (Taohai) asserts that . In a word, the lineage
of bhiksuni ordination in China has clearly been broken (to receive
base rules from a sangha consisting of bhiksunis only, not to mention
receiving 1group ordination from bhiksus) during Sung Dynasty (around
A.D. 972).. (26) This assertion is refuted by clear documentation. During
the Northern Sung dynasty, Emperor T.aitsu (Taizu) began a persecution of
Buddhism and prohibited bhiksunis from traveling to bhiksu
monasteries to receive ordination. However, this prohibition was not in
effect for long. After Emperor T.aitsu (Taizu) died in 976, his son
T.aitsung (Taizong) came to power and was well disposed toward Buddhism.(27)
This can be proven from historical records documenting that T.aitsung
(Taizong) established an ordination platform in the year 978. Additional
ordination platforms were erected in 980, 1001, 1009, and 1010.(28) The year
1010 was especially important, because 72 ordination platforms were erected
throughout the country. (See attached documents).

E. Question: How should the Siksamana ordination be performed?

1. The Siksamana precepts could be given by Dharmagupta
bhiksunis according to the Mulasarvastivada tradition, using the
siksamana precepts from the Mulasarvastivada tradition. This is possible
because bhiksunis ordained according to the Dharmagupta Vinaya have
all the Siksamana precepts as explained in the Mulasarvastivada
Vinaya. The siksamana precepts could be explained by the bhiksunis
in Tibetan, by using the Tibetan Mulasarvastivada text.

2. The training of nuns in the bhiksuni precepts could be
explained to the candidates during these two years of Siksamana
training, because Siksamanas are permitted to study the bhiksuni
precepts. The training of nuns in the Siksamana precepts for two
years could be done in one of three ways:

a. Training in India or Nepal: Bhiksunis from Taiwan, Korea, and
other countries can assist with the training of candidates in India and
Nepal.

b. Training in Taiwan, Korea, or Vietnam: The advantage of this option
is that the candidates would get excellent training in monastic discipline
and get the experience of living with senior bhiksunis. The
disadvantage is that many of the candidates for bhiksuni ordination
in the Tibetan tradition are in the midst of an intensive education
program. It would be an interruption to have these candidates go to Taiwan
or elsewhere to train in the precepts. Furthermore, the training is
conducted in an unfamiliar language and culture.

c. Tibetan bhiksus could also teach the Siksamana
precepts, based on the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya.

3. It is clear in the texts of all Vinaya traditions that the .
ramanerika and Siksamana precepts are to be given by bhiksunis.
The training of nuns in the bhiksuni precepts could be explained to
the candidates during these two years of Siksamana training, because
siksamanas are permitted to study the bhiksuni precepts.
According to the Dharmagupta Vinaya, a Siksamana has to study the
bhiksuni precepts for two years.(29).

This training could be conducted in two ways:

a. Tibetan bhiksus could teach the Bhiksuni Pratimoksa
according to the Mulasarvastivada tradition.

b. Bhiksunis of the Chinese, Korean, or other countries could
be invited to explain the bhiksuni precepts, using both the
Dharmagupta and Mulasarvastivada texts.

4. Exceptions with regard to Siksamana ordination are possible
under certain circumstances. In Kunkhyen Tsonaba Sherab Zangpo.s Dulwa
Tsotik,(30) in the context of the twoyear training of a siksamana, it
says that a Siksamana needs to take the precepts . from an
upadhyayika and karmakarika, together with a sangha of
bhiksunis. The female sangha must be comprised of twelve
bhiksunis in a . central land.. In a . border land,. where twelve
bhiksunis are not available, six bhiksunis need to be present. If
this number of bhiksunis is not complete and the precepts are given
by a community of four bhiksunis, the precepts are said to arise,
although those who conduct the ordination commit a fault (nyes byas;
duskrta). The same text says, . If one cannot find the required
bhiksunis, it is even permissible for the Bhiksu Sangha to give the
Siksamana precepts (dge slong ma de dag ma rnyed na/ dge slong pha'i
dge 'dun gyis kyang dge slob ma'i bslab pa sbyin du rung ste).. (31)

F. Question: Is there one bhiksuni lineage in China or two?

There is one bhiksuni lineage in the Dharmagupta tradition, not
two. In 357 CE, Ching Chien (Jingjian) was ordained as a bhiksuni by
bhiksus alone, because there were no bhiksunis in China at
that time. Chinese Buddhists traditionally regard this as the beginning of
the bhiksuni ordination in China. After the arrival of Bhiksuni
Devasara and other bhiksunis from Sri Lanka, Huikuo (Huiguo) and
other Chinese bhiksunis were reordained by both bhiksus and
bhiksunis, in a ceremony led by the bhiksu master Sanghavarman
and the bhiksuni master Devasara (Pali. Tessara, Chin. Tiehsolo) in
434 C.E. Although the ordination of bhiksunis by bhiksus only
is a flawed procedure, it is considered valid. Even the senior Vinaya master
Dao Hai (Taohai), who is concerned about the state of Vinaya practice in
general these days, agrees that a bhiksuni ordination by bhiksus
alone is valid, even though the bhiksus who conduct such an
ordination commit a minor transgression. The Dharmagupta Vinaya Pitaka
source for the ordination of bhiksunis by bhiksus alone is the
fourth gurudharma, as explained above. This is equivalent to the
first gurudharma of the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya. As mentioned by
Bhiksu Dao Hai (Taohai), the fourthcentury Vinaya master Gunavarman and the
seventhcentury Dharmagupta master TaoHsuan (Taoxuan) agreed that a
bhiksuni ordination by bhiksus alone is valid.(32)

The lineage that began with Ching Chien (Jingjian) was strengthened
through the reordination of the bhiksunis by a dual ordination
ceremony conducted in 434 C.E by bhiksunis from Sri Lanka, together
with Chinese bhiksus, headed by Sanghavarman. This was done to remove
the doubts of the nuns who had earlier been ordained by bhiksus alone
and who questioned whether the ordination they had received from bhiksus
only was sufficient. The history of how the bhiksuni lineage,
starting with Mahaprajapati, was transmitted from India to Sri Lanka by King
Asoka.s daughter Sanghamitta, and was then transmitted by Devasara and
eleven other bhiksunis from Sri Lanka to China, is well documented
and can be requested from the Board of Sri Lanka Bhikkhuni Order. At
present, in East Asia, when a bhiksuni is invited to serve as a
bhiksuni ordination master, she is not asked whether she was ordained in
a single or a dual ordination ceremony. Both types of ordination are
considered valid. Thus, there is only one lineage of bhiksuni
ordination, not two.

G. Question: Are Documents Available that Record of the Lineage of the
Dharmagupta Bhiksuni Vinaya?

The bhiksu lineage in China can be documented all the way back to
the Buddha. The bhiksuni lineage in China can be documented from the
time of Ching Chien (Jingjian), the first Chinese bhiksuni, in 357
C.E. The text that documents the bhiksu lineage back to the time of
Buddha Sakyamuni is enclosed herewith. The text that documents the
bhiksuni lineage in China from the time of the first Chinese bhiksunis
up to the present day is also enclosed herewith. Vinaya sources documenting
the validity of the Dharmagupta bhiksuni ordination are provided
above, including (1) bhiksuni ordination by bhiksus alone, and
(2) bhiksuni ordination by a dual Sangha of bhiksunis and
bhiksus (see pp. 13 of this paper).

H. Question: Are bhikshuni ordination ceremonies as conducted in East
Asia done in compliance with instructions set out in the Dharmaguptaka
Vinaya?

1. In the bhiksuni ordination ceremonies that are held in Taiwan,
nuns are ordained in groups of three, not in groups of one or two hundred.
There are numerous candidates, who are divided into groups of three, just as
in the Tibetan tradition, which is why the ordination ceremony takes a long
time. The procedure is conducted in accordance with the full bhiksuni
ordination rite as given in the Vinaya texts. The newly ordained bhiksunis
are individually informed three by three of the exact time of their
ordination, to determine their seniority. To know who is senior to oneself
is considered very important in daily life in the Chinese, Korean,
Taiwanese, and Vietnamese traditions. Bhiksus and bhiksunis
are keenly aware of monastic seniority, and stand, walk, and sit according
to seniority, as determined by the time of their ordination.

2. The Sanskrit term pathati (Tib. .don pa, Chin. nien/nian)
actually has two meanings: "to read (aloud)" and "to recite (aloud)". The
word may be interpreted in both ways, to recite by heart or to read aloud
from a text. In Chinese, . to recite sutras. is usually . nien
ching (nianjing). and, like the Sanskrit, may refer to both .
reading aloud (from a text). or . reciting aloud (by heart).. In Tibetan, .
to recite the Pratimoksa Sutra is . so sor thar paSi mdo .don pa;
in Chinese, sou polo timuchai or sung polotimuchai (both
sou and sung mean to read aloud). The discrepancy between the
practice in early times and today is easy to explain. It is true that, at
the time of the Buddha and when the Vinaya texts were compiled, writing was
not common in society. Therefore, the texts were transmitted orally, by
memory, at that time. In modern Taiwan, it is considered appropriate for the
precept master to read certain parts of the ritual aloud during the
ordination procedure, although the candidates must learn the rituals by
heart and are not allowed to rely on any texts during the rite. They either
recite the appropriate sections of the text by heart or repeat them after
the master. Learning portions of the texts by heart is an integral part of
the preparation of candidates during the thirty or fortyfive days of the
Triple Platform Ordination Ceremony. Western candidates for bhiksuni
ordination are also asked to learn certain parts of the rite (for example,
the questions about the hindrances) by heart.

Conclusion

It is clear that a living lineage of bhiksunis exists today, with
over 58,000 bhiksunis in China, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and
elsewhere. This lineage dates back to Buddha Sakyamuni and the first nun,
Mahaprajapati. The lineage was transmitted from India to Sri Lanka by
Sanghamitta, and then from Sri Lanka to China by Devasara, where it merged
with the already existing lineage of bhiksunis who had been ordained
by bhiksus only. The lineage then flourished in China and was
transmitted from there to Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and other countries.
Although it is true that not every bhiksuni ordination has been
performed in a dual ordination procedure, it is an indisputable fact that
the Chinese bhiksuni lineage has continued unbroken and flourished
until the present day. Therefore, there exists no obstacle to conducting a
bhiksuni ordination for nuns in the Tibetan tradition. [^]

*

NOTES

1. Cullavagga X.2.1 (Vin II 257,79). For a complete list of the
references for these eight gurudharmas in the different renditions of
the Vinaya and a table of their different order and deviations see, Jinil
Chung, "Gurudharma und Astau Gurudharmah," Indo-Iranian Journal 42
(1999), pp. 22734.

4. The texts of six schools of Vinaya are found in Chinese translation:
Dharmagupta, Mahi.asaka, Mahasanghika, Theravada, Sarvastivada, and
Mulasarvastivada. Mulasarvastivada: Taisho 24, T.1451, p. 351b, line 19. "A
bhiksuni should request going forth and full ordination to become the
nature of a bhiksuni from the bhiksus".

25. Complete Records of the Biographies of Bbiksunis (Taipei:
Fochiao Publications, 1988). This work includes two compilations: (1)
Pichiuni chuan (The Biographies of Bhiksunis), compiled by Paochiang in
the sixth century, and (2) Hsu Pichiuni chuan (The Sequel Biographies
of Bhiksunis), compiled by Chenhua (1911).

26. See Bhikkhu Taohai, "Discussion of Bhiksuni Ordination and Its
Lineage in China: Based on Scriptures of Chinese Vinaya and Historical
Facts," Paper given at the Vinaya conference held in Dharamsala in 1998, pp.
1718.

The ceremony, which was conducted in the Sri Lankan tradition, was
presided over by eight Bhikkhuni from Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Indonesia. Two
monks from Tibet and six from Thailand also attended the historic event.

"I used to think that female clergy was a thing of the past,'' said
Dhammarakhita, who spent her last nine years as a white-robed nun.

"But when I learned of the revival of the Bhikkhuni order, I decided to
get ordained because I believe it is the right thing to serve Buddhism.''

She likened Buddhism to a house. "It must have four supporting pillars to
become stable and strong. But now we only have three, namely monks, male and
female supporters. Having female monastics will give us the missing
pillar,'' said Dhammarakhita, whose name means "one who is protected by
dhamma''.

Sri Lanka revived female ordinations in the Theravada Buddhism tradition
in 1998. Two Thai women have previously sought novice ordination from the
Sri Lankan female clergy but both were ordained in Sri Lanka.

Dhammarakhita's was the first ever held in Thailand.

Preceptor Bhikkhuni Saddha Sumana said the ceremony marked the long
religious exchange between Thailand and Sri Lanka.

When Sri Lanka's clergy disappeared in the 11th century, the Thai clergy
sent a delegation of monks to re-establish Theravada Buddhism there. Now
that Thailand wants to set up the female clergy, it is Sri Lanka's turn to
help.

She said the Sri Lankan Bhikkhuni also faced resistance when the order
was revived a few years ago, but very little now. "I certainly hope Thailand
will support more female ordinations.''

At present, white-robed nuns in Thailand are not considered monastics.
They also suffer discrimination and lack of support.

The Thai clergy always insists that it is impossible to set up the female
clergy in Thailand because the Bhikkhuni lineage in the Theravada tradition
was long extinct.

They also prohibited Thai monks from ordaining samaneri and bhikkhuni.

Samaneri Dhammananda, however, said the present female order in the
Mahayana tradition is historically dated back to the Theravada Bhikkhuni
order in Sri Lanka.

It was then legitimate for the Mahayana bhikkhuni to help the Sri Lankan
sisters revive its female order.

"In terms of vinaya or discipline, it is the same lineage,'' she said.

Like her predecessors, Dhammarakhita Samaneri must complete her two-year
novicehood before seeking Bhikkhuni ordination in Sri Lanka.

"I know that there might be resistance,'' she said. "But I am prepared,
knowing that I am doing the right thing.''

Before her nine years in nunhood, Dhammarakhita worked as a secretary and
translator.

She graduated with a diploma in business from Australia.

"I quit the worldly life because I want to break the chain of lifetimes
by practicing dhamma,'' she said.

Her two children, she said, were supportive of her decision to live a
religious life.

She also sought a divorce from her husband in order to be eligible for
the novice ordination and to join the female clergy. [^]

[5]

The rules are there to be tested

Sanitsuda EkachaiBangkok Post, 03 May 2001

When Buddhist scholar Chatsumarn Kabilsingh became a female novice monk,
or samaneri, in preparation for full ordination as a bhikkhuni, or female
monk, she said she received two main reactions. One was admiration, the
other the awkward silence of disapproval.

Now she must learn to deal with what most pioneers of change cannot
avoid-persecution.

Her TV interviews were banned. Religious affairs officials issued threats
that her temple would be in hot water if it was not properly registered or
if the temple's financial accounts were cloudy.

Ms Chatsumarn, who has now adopted the Buddhist name of Dhammananda,
remains calm. And humble. "My mind is firm and clear as to why I want to
live a religious life as well as to why women should get ordained," she
said.

Given the clergy's patriarchal system, Dhammananda Samaneri knew
beforehand that her ordination might make the establishment edgy.

But should things get rough, she said, her clear conscience, the
determination to continue the Lord Buddha's legacy for women's
spirituality-and the understanding that it is natural for any establishment
to be angry with perceived threat-will eventually save her from losing her
inner calm.

Dhammananda Samaneri's first spiritual test has begun.

Looked on from the bright side, the TV ban and the threats are nothing
compared to what happened in the 1920s. Social critic Narin Klueng had his
daughters Sara and Chongdee ordained as novices, but they were immediately
arrested, defrocked and temporarily jailed.

Backed by a sensational media, the incensed clergy then declared female
ordination illegal. That's why Thai women who want to live a religious life
have no choice but to become the head-shaven, white-robed mae chi despite
the low social status, the lack of legal recognition for nunhood and zero
support.

Next, the clergy has begun using the Vinaya to back its opposition to
bhikkhuni ordination.

The Vinaya demands dual ordination for bhikkhunis. Since the bhikkhuni
lineage in the Theravada tradition disappeared long ago, they argue that it
is simply impossible to ordain women as female monks, ever again.

The clergy also often dish out the patronising consolation to women that,
ordination or not, women still can pursue spiritual development. It does not
occur to them that if ordination is indeed unnecessary, why do men need to
become monks?The clergy's other strategy is to make women feel bad about
their religious rights. By portraying women who want to become bhikkhunis as
greedy for status and recognition-a sign of spiritual unreadiness-many nuns
remain silent about their wishes.

Unlike Ms Sara and Ms Chongdee, who were defrocked, Dhammananda Samaneri
has many things going for her. The media is largely positive. Although the
army-run TV Channel 5 has banned her, Channel 11 and UBC 8 have invited her
for TV interviews.

Also, female ordination is no longer a taboo subject, thanks to the
strong women's movement worldwide. And the clergy has lost much of its
credibility due to laxity and endless scandals. This is probably why many
monks have dared to voice their public support for female ordination,
something unimaginable just a decade ago.

In addition, the Thai clergy's demand for bhikkhunis' dual ordination is
wearing thin; the Buddha permitted the removal of minor monastic rules
should they prove cumbersome for the bhikkhu and bhikkhuni Sanghas.

So if the clergy's insistence on the rule of dual ordination for
bhikkhunis has robbed women of their spiritual path as well as their
opportunity to help one another practise dhamma better in a female Sangha,
the solution is simple: These rules must go. [^]

[6]

Make way for the women

Sanitsuda EkachaiBangkok Post, 15 March 2001

'Have all the Buddhas come into being for men's benefit alone? Definitely
not. They also are for the benefit of women. The path of liberation is open
to both men and women."So said the Lord Buddha over 2,500 years ago when he
set up the Bhikkhuni order to allow women equal opportunity for spiritual
practices.

The Buddha also cautioned that the health of Buddhism depended on the
existence and strength of four pillars: bhikkhu (monks), bhikkhuni (female
monks), upasaka (male lay devotees), and upasika (female lay devotees).

No wonder the Thai Sangha is in deep crisis. Apart from the monks' laxity
and devotees' negligence, one of the causes of the Sangha decline is its
discrimination against women.

Although temples depend primarily on Thai women for alms and donations,
the clergy's patriarchal system has been hostile to women's quest for
spiritual lives. Forget about the Bhikkhuni order; the clergy is determined
not to let it see the light of day. Meanwhile, most white-robed, head-shaven
"mae chi", or nuns, are kept down as temple servants with no legal status as
religious persons. They also suffer low social status and stereotyping as
broken-hearted women or as fleeing something.

For women who need serious religious practice, they have very few temples
to which they can turn. Most go to nunneries which, like the nuns
themselves, must struggle to pursue a religious life without any state or
cleric support.

This is the clergy's standard argument against Bhikkhuni ordination:
Female monks must be ordained by both the Bhikkhu and Bhikhuni orders
according to the Vinaya, or Buddhist discipline. Since the Theravada
Bhikkhuni lineage became extinct more than 1,000 years ago, it's just not
possible to ordain female monks. End of story.

Last month, a prominent Thai Buddhist scholar, Chartsumarn Kabilsingh,
did what more women will soon do; when she could not get any sympathy from
the Thai Sangha, she turned elsewhere. She was ordained by the Sri Lankan
clergy as a novice and adopted a new religious name, Dhammananda. When the
two preparatory years as a novice are completed, she will be ordained as a
Theravada bhikkhuni.

Although Thai law allows only two sects in Theravada Buddhism, it's
unlikely that the clergy will dare outlaw female monks ordained in Sri
Lankan Theravada Buddhism given their close historical ties.

In the 18th century, when Buddhism in Sri Lanka was in decay and there
were not even monks to perform ordinations, Siam sent a delegation of monks
to ordain and continue the Theravada lineage there. Hence its name,
Siyamnikaya.

Now that Sri Lanka has restored the Bhikkhuni order, it is Thailand's
turn to seek help.

Reformist monks and scholars in Sri Lanka argue that the Theravada
Bhikkhuni lineage has not been broken. Although the Bhikkhuni order now
remains only in the Mahayana tradition in East Asian countries, it actually
originated from Theravada Buddhism when female monks from Sri Lanka
travelled to China to establish the Bhikkhuni order there in the 5th
century. Given the same origins, Mahayana bhikkhunis then can help ordain
and revive the Bhikkhuni order in the Theravada tradition, they said.

The Vinaya requires the presence of at least five bhikkhunis and five
bhikkhus to ordain female monks. We now need only four women to follow in
Dhammananda Bhikkhuni's footsteps-and five Thai monks who have the courage
to go against the elders-to see the birth of the Bhikkhuni order in
Thailand.

If the feudal Thai clergy refuses to wake up to women's rightful position
in the religious realm, it soon will become irrelevant [^]